With all my love
by Liphuggers
Summary: Takes place from the last scene of the season finale and after.
1. Chapter 1

I do not own the characters or words in italics. Please enjoy!

She turned around to see his facial expression and offered a tear stained smiling face. Her smile faded as she found no one standing behind her and stared bewilderedly towards the door. She turned back to where Norman was standing next to Ardis' bed, and tried to mirror Rita's smile. She took a deep breath, a few steps backwards, turned and walked out of the room. Her eyes searched for him, thinking he stepped out to give Norman and Ardis a little privacy.

As she walked closer to where the twins and their mother were still conversing, she stopped. Through the rain soaked window, she could see a man's silhouette, a very familiar man. She took a few breaths watching him and reached for her umbrella. She walked through the door, opened the umbrella and saw the mailbox that he stood before, his hand holding the slot open. She felt her heart beat just a bit faster and felt it was a little harder to breathe. She wanted to do something, anything, but she knew he needed space because their words ran through her mind like a record that had been skipping.

_It's funny, remember the day we first met? I had a letter that I was afraid to open. And now you have a letter that you're afraid to mail. _

_I'm not afraid to mail this letter._

_Then what are you afraid of._

She thought of what he was afraid of, but what she was afraid of was playing out in front of her like one of Shakespeare's tragedies. The letter turned in his hand so as to not get the address any wetter, he hesitated. She held her breath and tried with all her might to quiet her loud, beating heart. The tears built up in her beautiful eyes, hoping this wasn't happening. One swift motion of his wrist, the letter was gone and the mail slot slammed shut. That sound resonated throughout her whole body. It was done; he mailed it, his future now property of the United States Postal Service. His letter sat somewhere in that box, in an envelope, with stamps, ready to be sent on a journey to a different country, to the mailbox of a woman that only became real to her when she saw the name he had written. The tears that she felt cloud her vision suddenly fell, only for it to become blurry once again.

He turned and looked at her; she saw the obvious pain and uncertainty in his face that had taken over him. In that moment, there was no air for her to breathe, no other feeling but blood coursing through her veins, no sound but the pounding in her ears, and a terrible ache in her heart. Suddenly, thoughts flooded her memory of Becky reminding her of her reputation with unavailable men, the way Oliver exploded when she told him that Holly planned to stay in Paris, and how a few moments ago he speculated that she invaded his privacy and read his letter. He looked down at the ground. More tears fell from her eyes.

Their eyes met again. Her latest thoughts were of the words or a poem written on a piece of paper, that she would never know what had been said. His kind, gentleman ways, the way she felt her heart beat faster when she stole quick glances of him in the DLO. The thought of his consoling hug in the bank vault when the uncertainty of Katherine's health hung in the midst, the end of the dance where she thought they might almost...

She went to move towards him, and he to her, she stopped. He continued to make his way in her direction. She wet her lips to speak as he came closer. He stopped beside her, turned only his head and starred into her eyes. His eyes were red-rimmed, more so than earlier that evening, the rain washed away any evidence of tears he may have shed. She lost all sense of thought and words had failed her as she tried to say his name. He turned his head forward; she watched as he swallowed hard and straightened his tie. He opened the door and gestured for her to walk in. She nodded, closed her umbrella and turned around only to be standing very close to him. He backed up, put his hands behind his back, looked at the floor and said in a shaky whispered tone, "I mailed my letter."

"So you have." Her voice almost mimicked his.

"Oliver, you're soaking wet!" Rita said loudly as she and Norman walked over from across the lobby. Shane quickly wiped her eyes and Oliver cleared his throat.

"Well everyone, it is getting late and we should be leaving as the hospital visiting hours are almost over." He still didn't look at her. Her heart was breaking and knew that his decision to not look at her was all she needed to know what was in that letter.

She took a deep breath, shook her head and smiled at Rita and politely said they should get going, since Rita's car was back at the Post Office. They said goodnight to Norman and Rita said goodnight to Oliver. The two women turned and walked into the pouring rain towards Shane's car.

"Are you alright? You didn't say good night to Oliver."

"Yes, Rita I'm fine." She lied. "Just forgot I guess, busy day." She held back every emotion she had been feeling.

"No, you don't forget, even when you two are arguing you still manage to say something to each other." Rita said adjusting her glasses and looking over at Shane.

"So glad that Ardis is going to be ok, Norman is probably so happy." She tried to distract Rita from the conversation, knowing that can be very easy to do.

"Oh yes, Norman is very brave to have let Oliver open that letter and find out that she wanted to meet him!" Rita said in her usual chipper voice. "Did you know she flew all the way from Papua New Guinea?"

All Shane could concentrate on was Oliver and if her suspicions were correct, it had to have been an 'I miss you, come home' letter. She thought about what would this mean for their friendship, or even just being coworkers? "Rita, could you pick out a radio station to listen to?"

Rita obliged and they sat in near silence, as Rita sang some songs off the radio. When they got to Rita's car, they said good night and Shane drove away. She turned the music off as her thoughts were overpowering everything. She got home, walked in the door, turned on a few lights and headed into the kitchen. She reached in the cabinet and took out a wine glass, opened a drawer and took out a corkscrew. She walked to the other side of the room and grabbed a bottle and walked back. She opened the bottle, poured a glass and headed for her bathroom to draw a bath. She wasn't the type to relax in the tub, but after everything that happened, she needed it. When the bath was ready, she set her wine glass and her iPad on the side of the tub, lit some candles, turned off the lights and got in. Once settled, she put some music on and took a sip of wine. The next song that played, she could not stop it fast enough. It had been a classical song that Oliver had said he enjoyed listening to while they drove to deliver dead letters. She selected another song, put her head back and closed her eyes. Like before, the very next song was another, more contemporary song that Oliver had enjoyed, and she swears he had hummed to it once. She turned off her iPad and sat there, she felt the tears forming in her eyes again and she let them fall. More came and went, followed by loud, emotional sobs.

When she walked in to the DLO the next day, Rita and Norman where already sorting the mail. She sat down at her desk that Norman built for her and powered on the computer. "Where's Oliver?" She asked nonchalantly.

"He called and said he'd be late." Norman said.

"He never is late; I hope he is feeling alright." Rita said concerned. "He was standing in the rain an awfully long time last night."

She smiled politely and turned back to her computer and started typing away.

"Hey guys, sorry this letter was processed but got stuck to the belt. It is still pretty damp, must've been in the rain last night, can't read a thing, except that it's going to France, I think." One of the postal workers said as he handed the letter to Rita and left.

Rita walked slowly trying to decipher what the words said. Norman walked over to look also. "Hard to figure out, the writing looks familiar."

She looked at it and thought it might be Oliver's. Of course his letter would come through the DLO.

"Good morning everyone, please excuse my tardiness. Miss McInerney, what do we have here?" He asked, seeing the letter on the corner of her desk. He didn't fully look at her, just quick glances.

She looked at him and then down at the letter that Rita had put down on her desk. She stood up and said, "Oliver, might I have a word with you?" Rita and Norman glanced at each other and shared a look of confusion. Shane and Oliver went into a private corner of the DLO. She looked at him and handed him the letter. He looked down at the letter and then at her. She thought he looked exhausted. "It got too wet Oliver and the address is illegible. I knew it was had to be yours."

"Thank you Miss McInerney for bringing my letter back to me so it could be mailed again, without the possibility of the address…" He cleared his throat. "Being soaked." He took the letter, opened it, put it in a new envelope, put stamps on it and sent it on its way.

"You figured out who the letter belonged too?" Norman asked.

Oliver stood in front of the mail shoot, turned around, put his hands behind his back and said "It was my letter Norman, to my wife." He looked at Shane and saw the hurt that was still in her eyes.


	2. Chapter 2

Words in italics are from the website stamps. org Fun-Facts

* * *

Norman nodded and in his usual nervous, awkward moment distraction he said "Did you know that "_in 1693, letters were held in front of a candle to determine the postage rate. The less the light shone through, the more costly the rate_"." He looked at Rita and she shook her head and he stopped talking.

The DLO fell silent for a moment but it felt like forever to her, until Rita chimed in and said they had a bunch of dead letters come in that morning. Oliver picked one, as usual and they went to work investigating to whom the letter belonged to. Lunchtime rolled around and they were still gathering evidence and just that much closer to delivering the letter to the intended recipient. All four of them went to the Mailbox Grille for something to eat and regroup about the dead letter. The tension between her and Oliver was felt by all. Rita did her best to diffuse the anxiety and talked about the "Miss Special Delivery" contest and how nervous she was for nationals.

Shane wondered about how work would be if this tension continued. They were in a better place now than they were when she told him that she looked up his wife's address, but then he had to mail that letter. She knew she couldn't ask him what it said, but she needed answers. She knew she had to wait for a time when they were alone, but would that happen? Oliver worked with Norman this morning and she just heard him ask him to go along on a lead they had just gotten. The next couple of days were similar, and she had had enough. Oliver and Norman where going out on a lead for another dead letter, when they got to Oliver's car, she told Norman to go back to the office. She was too heated to think of anything better to say other than what she had planned on saying to Oliver.

"Miss McInerney, I-" He was not happy that she had told Norman to go back to the DLO.

"Oliver, listen," She interrupted and got in the car, "since you mailed that letter, things with us have been unpleasant and it is difficult to work together."

"Well," Getting in the car with her, "I'm sorry that these working conditions are not up to your satisfaction, but I did something that needed to be done. We are after all, just co-workers."

She hated each and every time he said that. But it was true. She finally was going to try to accept that that was it, co-workers. That's all they would ever be. Her heart sank to the pit of her stomach. "Yes, just co-workers."

"What do we need to do to get past this, since it is not adequate to our work ethic?" He looked at her and then the steering wheel.

"I don't know." She said so quietly she wasn't quite sure he heard her.

He nodded, started the car and classical music came through the speakers. She sighed. She knew she needed to move on from her feelings for him to get them past this limbo, but her heart couldn't and wouldn't give up that easily. She wished that he chose to mail that letter at a different time. Why not in the morning when he got to work, before she got there, or even put it in a mailbox near his house. She thought about him doing that, maybe that would have alleviated a little of the pain. She wouldn't have known he mailed it. But that would be a terrible solution; she still knew he wrote it no matter what. Maybe Holly wouldn't answer his letter. This was the only shred of hope that she could hang on to for them to "get past this". Shane knew this was a terrible bargaining act she played with her heart, but for the sake of being able to work with him. She looked over at him, and thought, how could a woman just walk away from such a good man?

"Shane."

"Hmm, what did you say Oliver?"

"I asked you what the address was again." He said looking at her and on then on road. She apologized, read him the address and they continued on their journey.

The following days where seemingly better since she put everything behind her, and he appeared to have let go of what was bothering him. The tension had subsided and it felt like things were getting back to normal. She tried not to think about the letter that should have been delivered and read.

It had been a month since the letter had been mailed and still no word if Oliver had gotten a reply, phone call, anything. She figured there might not be a reply and she was happy about it. Although for Oliver's sake he should have some kind of closure. She looked around the DLO and everything was in its place. Rita sorting dead letters, and Norman looking up information about some stamp he had just found. She looked over at Oliver, with a Yoo-hoo in hand, he was in deep, pensive thought. She enjoyed glancing at him from time to time, she knew she shouldn't bring her heart back into this, but she felt the butterflies stir in her stomach like she did that night they danced right here, in this office. All of a sudden he was brought out of his thoughts and his eyes met hers. Her heart skipped a beat and she looked away. She smiled to herself, went back to doing her work and gave him one last glance before she got really involved in what she was doing. He was still looking at her, but he quickly looked down and she noticed a small blush come across his cheeks. She looked back at her computer and smiled a little bigger than before.

The newest supervisor walked in to the Dead letter office to say that there was a visitor for Oliver. He was confused as were the rest of them, but people that had gotten dead letters mailed to them did stop by to thank them once in a while. The supervisor told the visitor to come in.


	3. Chapter 3

The visitor who entered the Dead Letter Office was a woman. She wore expensively beautiful high heels, her nails were well manicured and painted, and her dress fit her very well. Her necklace was a beautiful gold locket. She had dirty blonde hair, green eyes and was pretty. She had perfect posture and exuded so much confidence. Oliver immediately stood and walked around his desk. He stood there for a few seconds and let the situation sink in. He suddenly went over to her. It was a little awkward for the two, they didn't know whether to hug or kiss, so they did an awkward shuffle and both went for the safest thing, a hug.

"Norman, Rita, you remember-" Oliver stopped as the three exchanged pleasantries and handshakes, he looked at Shane. Her mouth was slightly agape, not taking her eyes off the visitor. She slowly stood and glanced over at Oliver. He was still looking at her, and then he looked down at the floor, swallowed and took a breath. He guided the visitor over to Shane's desk. "Shane McInerney, please meet Holly O'Toole, my wife. Holly, Shane McInerney, technology mastermind."

She stood there staring at the other woman. Shane snapped out of her gaze and put out her hand. She smiled, and hoped her look of surprise had vanished. As she shook hands with Oliver's wife, she felt her stomach turn. "It's very nice to meet you, Mrs. O'Toole."

Holly smiled and said, "Oh please, call me Holly, as I hope I might be able to call you Shane."

"Shane will be just fine Holly, thank you." She was still smiling, or at least trying to. Oliver and Holly went out for coffee as the others stayed in the DLO. Rita rushed over to Shane and asked her what she thought about Holly. "You know Rita, I've had dreams of this day and I always woke up before she and I spoke to each other. Now that it's actually happened, I'm not sure what to think. I'm happy for Oliver of course, but-" She stopped there not wanting to say anything else for fear of stirring up tears that might fall.

"But it was better when she was just a figment of your imagination?" Rita asked knowing her friend must have been upset.

Shane nodded, that's all she could do. She hadn't realized that Rita knew of her feelings for Oliver, though she was a smart woman and picked up on small cues like that. Rita gave her friend a half smile and a hug then went back to work. Shane could not concentrate. All she kept thinking about was the letter; her suspicions were right about it. She just never imagined that Holly would return. Then she thought about Oliver, what would that mean to their friendship? How would Holly being back change their relationship as co-workers? Then Shane had a thought, Holly wasn't wearing an engagement ring or a wedding band. She had noticed her left hand had been void of rings, and looked as if it had been for a while. Maybe Holly came here to say goodbye. Her thoughts were interrupted by Oliver's voice as he came back into the DLO.

"Miss McInerney, I brought you back a coffee as I have a feeling this letter will be one that needs much vitality." He smiled and held the coffee out for her to take.

She turned to him and gave her best polite smile, "No thank you, Oliver." She turned back to the computer and started typing.

Oliver looked confused; he knew she never turned down a cup of coffee, especially when there was a lot of work to do. He set the coffee cup down on her desk and walked away. "Well, it's there if you'd like."

A few days later, Shane, Rita and Norman were at lunch at the Mailbox Grille, Oliver and Holly walked in, arm in arm. Shane tried to hide her disappointment, as she had been doing at work; she just hoped that they wouldn't sit near them. The past few days were like seeing Oliver in a new light, she was genuinely happy for him, but there was something inside her that was crushed. Actually, had she really thought about it in that moment like she did lying in her bed at night, she realized that her heart had been shattered. She had her heart on her sleeve, as always, but this time a married man had touched her heart. Oliver and Holly waved to the trio and sat on the other side of the bar. Shane exhaled. She hadn't realized she was holding her breath.

"So she came here after Oliver sent her a letter that ended up in the DLO?" Norman asked while looking at the couple.

"Yup." She said.

"Do you think they are getting back together?" Norman asked as he turned to the two beautiful women that sat on the other side of the table from him.

"I don't know." Rita said shaking her head and briefly looking at the couple. "They do look very friendly for having not been together for over a year."

"What do you think she wants?" Shane asked as her curiosity kicked in.

"Well, it looks like they are just talking about good times they shared when they were together, together."

"Norman! You shouldn't use your lip reading skills for that, it's just, wrong." Rita said and looked down at her lap, hoping she hadn't hurt his feelings.

"I had a cousin once lip read for-"

"Of course you did Norman." Shane interrupted his chance to finish that sentence. "Can we please just enjoy lunch without talking about _them_?" She said through semi-clenched teeth. She turned her head just a bit to look at Oliver. Holly was the one that her eyes met. She politely smiled and went back to her lunch.

The next day, Holly walked through the door of the DLO. "Darling, I didn't think we had plans for lunch today." Oliver said standing up, looking at his calendar. He walked around his desk and they kissed on the cheek.

"Oh, we don't Oliver; I wanted to take the lovely ladies that you work with, out to lunch later." Holly sweetly said as she looked at Rita and Shane.

"I would love to!" Rita said.

"I actually have a bunch of work that I need to get done, and I brought my lunch with me." Shane said trying to avoid talking with Holly.

"Oh, Miss McInerney, work can wait."

She was stunned by what Oliver had said. Work was always a top priority with him. "I have my lunch with me."

"Come on Shane, I don't bite."

"It might help you do a little stomping, Miss McInerney. Besides, I've heard that girl talk can be invigorating." He smiled at his own cleverness.

Shane really didn't want to go, but Oliver pushed. She looked at him irritably. So she went reluctantly with the other two women. The three sat at the bar, with Rita in the middle.

"So Shane, Oliver tells me you've been at the DLO for 8 months now? How do you like it compared to what you were transferred here to do in Direct Line Operations?"

Shane had wondered how Holly knew she was in direct line ops, "It's a different kind of work; I don't use my computer skills that I used in Washington as much. But it is more meaningful here at the dead letter office."

"You used your computer knowledge on that one dead letter case that we had, you are a genius." Rita gushed.

Shane blushed, "Thank you Rita."

"Where did you meet Oliver?" Rita asked, wanting to know and sensing a lull in the conversation.

"I sang in the choir at church, he joined the choir the next rehearsal and he fell in love with me."

"That is so romantic!" Rita gushed, "But you didn't fall in love with him right away?"

"He was too much of a gentleman; he followed me around like a lost puppy. He barely had the nerve to ask me out. The Oliver you see now is a lot more outgoing than what he was when I first met him."

"Wow, who knew Oliver was _that_ shy, he sounds like Norman." Rita said as she turned to Shane as she would most likely agree.

"So you use your computer skills more so for good rather than evil, Shane?" Holly asked quickly trying to get off the subject of Oliver.

Shane looked perplexed at Holly; she felt a twist in her stomach. She wondered if Oliver told Holly that she was the one that looked up her address. What she was going to say next was very important in the way she said it. "Yes, I use my skills to help find information that is useful in our investigations."

"So looking up a person's address could be one of them?"

She took a drink of water. Rita did say that Holly was smart. She had figured it out, and now wanted to have her admit it. "If a person wants to be found, it is fair game for anyone to find the information."

"But it is a lot easier to go to search the internet when you know how and have the person's name and place of residence." Holly's eyebrow went up.

Shane felt her blood boiling. "Holly if you have something to ask me, come out and ask me, we are adults."

"Did you look up my address so that my husband could send me that letter?"

Poor Rita was caught in the crossfire. Shane knew this wasn't the place to do this, but when being attack, she fought back. "I was under the impression that wives don't walk away from their husbands after vowing 'till death do you part'. I also think that running away to a different country is not the way to resolve your marital issues, and I'm pretty sure that being husband and wife means you wear your rings." She may have gotten carried away, but it had been on her mind and she wanted to get it off her chest.

Holly smiled, drank the rest of her drink, paid the bill, and turned towards Shane, "You've never been married, correct?" Holly didn't wait for Shane to answer. "So once you've been married a while and can understand that it takes a lot to keep a marriage going, to not lose sight of what you had planned for each other, with each other, then come talk to me." Holly looked at Rita, "Sorry about lunch Rita." Rita nodded, as she looked down in her lap, she had felt very uncomfortable.

When Holly exited the Mailbox Grille, Shane turned to Rita, "Oh Rita, I am so sorry you had to be in the middle of that."

"Did Oliver ask you to look up her address?" Rita said softly.

Shane was shocked; she exhaled and thought this could be a dangerous road to walk down. "The day you told me her name, I searched for her and found out she had signed a three year lease for an apartment in Paris. I told Oliver because I wanted him to realize she was moving on, so he should too. He got angry with me, but I told him I did it because I didn't want to see him get hurt."

"Oh Shane, wow, I can't believe you kept that a secret. But if I were in your shoes, I would've done the same thing. To watch someone you care about live in this indeterminate state of unknown, that's really hard."

Shane smiled and was glad Rita understood. They agreed to head back to work. Shane looked back at the stools where they just sat; she knew Holly was on the attack for blood, but why.

A couple of months went by and the tension between Oliver and Shane had risen because of Holly. So while in the car on a dead letter investigation, Shane was a little too quiet and Oliver had asked what was wrong, she said that she was feeling a bit under the weather. She looked out the window, her heart raced, and her head screamed at her to ask him. She turned to him and asked how it was going with Holly, to which he replied in his normal Oliver way, saying her curiosity would not be satisfied. It had been a while since he fed her curiosity, and now that Holly was back in the picture, and making things at work tense for her, she knew his answer.

Oliver looked over at her, "I'm asking Holly to move back in with me."

Her heart sank. Befuddled and a little relieved he gave in to some of her curiosity. Shane looked at him, "Oh I thought she was living with you." Her stomach flipped.

"No, we thought it would be easier on both of us if she had a room at the Brown Palace Hotel."

She sighed and her stomach turned. She looked out the window and knew what she had to do. She got her phone out and fired an email off to Becky.

Re: Transfer Immediately

Becky,

You were right, I got involved and now unforeseeable circumstances have caused me to see things in a clear light. I will be putting my request for transfer in as soon as I get back to the DLO. Your help in getting this done immediately is greatly required. Thank you.

Love,

Shane

She sighed again and put her phone back in her bag. This would hopefully be her last dead letter with the group. She felt terrible, tears started to form in her eyes and she did everything in her power not to let any fall. She looked at him. She thought of how she got into this mess. She cursed her heart for being so open to fall for a married man. She should have said no to being his dancing partner, and she shouldn't have read those love letters with him in the bank vault. A single tear escaped, she wiped it away quickly and was thankful he was driving.

Back at the DLO, she excused herself to file a transfer form. When she walked back in, she remembered all the fond memories they have shared over the last year. She sat back at her desk and looked at Norman and Rita, she was going to miss them, and hopefully they would finally tell each other how they felt about each other. Her eyes fell upon Oliver. Her heart started beating faster; she smiled as their ghosts danced in front of her. It wasn't fair that Holly came back. When Oliver sent that letter to Holly, she should have said something in the rain, something that changed his mind, anything so that she would not be filing for a transfer. Her phone pinged notifying her she had a new email.

Holly walked into the dead letter office to ask if Oliver was ready to pack up for the weekend and go out to dinner. Shane read the email. She looked at Oliver and breathing for her suddenly got hard to do. Holly caught Shane's line of vision, and looked at Oliver. She looked back at Shane, who had caught her eye and she looked back at her computer. Oliver had told everyone to have a great weekend, he and Holly left holding hands. Norman packed up and left after telling the two his plans were to find another rare stamp.

"Do you want to go get a bite to eat Shane? I'm starving." Rita asked as her stomach growled.

"No thank you Rita, I'm just going to finish up here and go home." She said looking at Rita and half smiling.

"Ok, have a good weekend, see you Monday!"

"Yeah, you too." Shane said as she looked down, and read the email on her phone again.

Re: Transfer Immediately

Shaney,

Your transfer to Seattle Post Office immediately, has been granted. The Direct Line Operations expect you on Tuesday. I will call you later to find out the details.

Love,

Becky

She swallowed hard and closed her eyes. This was it. She walked over to Rita's desk and pulled out three envelopes and three pieces of paper. She sat down at her own desk and wrote a letter to each of her co-workers, no, friends to tell them she was leaving. In Norman's she told him to not be so afraid of what he was feeling, that someone else shared his feelings. In Rita's she said she hopes things work out with Norman and she hopes to stay in touch with her. Then it was time to write Oliver's letter. She wanted to write all her feelings that she had for him, but knew the idea would not be taken very well by Holly, or even Oliver himself. She figured that she should just wish him well in everything he did, and glad that his wife was back in his life. She got up and put Norman's and Rita's on their desks and walked over to Oliver's. She traced his name with her fingers. She looked up and saw her dark of night award. "You should stay here as a reminder that we won you as a team." She said out loud, tears started to cloud her vision. She heard the door to the office open and high heels click on the floor. She tried to wipe away her tears before she turned around. The heels stopped close behind her. She felt the air shift; she didn't need to turn around to know who it was.

"I know you're in love with my husband."


	4. Chapter 4

Shane stared straight ahead at the wall, her breathing became very shallow and her heart raced. She thought about what Holly said, was she in love with Oliver? Cared for him, absolutely. Intrigued by him, definitely. Infatuated with him, maybe. Love? She turned and immediately said, "In love with- I'm not in love with Oliver! That is a terrible accusation. How dare you come in to my place of business and accuse me of something like that!"

Holly stepped closer to her. "I've seen the way you look at him; you are only fooling yourself if you say you are not in love with him."

"Holly, I am not in love with Oliver." She said looking her dead in the eye, her heart pounded in her chest.

"You think that by helping my husband look up my address to write a letter to me was somehow a way to get close to him?"

"I helped him in the only way I knew how, letting him know that someone that _he_ loved had moved on." She said angrily

"So the truth comes out. Little Miss 'Technology Mastermind' found my address with her super sleuthing skills."

"I wouldn't have had to if you had sent a forwarding address like you said you would. Poor Oliver had been waiting for that, for you, for an explanation."

"I didn't want to be found! I needed space and found it. I wasn't ready to talk to him about why I left, why I had to leave. Then you come into this office and totally turn everything upside down for him. He was fine pining for me. It's how I wanted it!"

"That's a horrible thing to do for someone that you are married to."

"It very well may be."

Shane was disgusted with this woman, how could anyone treat another person like this that they loved. "Why did you come back?"

Holly laughed, "The question is Miss McInerney, why did I leave?"

Shane's blood boiled that Holly used her last name, like he did; only hers had a negative connotation to it. "Either way, Oliver deserves to know."

"I suspected that you want to know as well. You want the wife out of the picture so you can make your move, and pounce on an innocent, distraught man."

"Oliver and I are co-workers and friends, I care about his feelings. I'm tired of him always looking for a letter from you, and not knowing if you're ever coming back to him. If you're going to play games, maybe it would be better if you let him go and play your little mouse game with someone in Paris!"

"So you do care about my husband! I knew it! You want to talk about my cat and mouse game, you've got a lot of nerve! This is not any of your business!"

"I care about Oliver as a friend! It seems to me that you don't care about him at all! So I ask you again, why did you come back?"

Their voices had filled the room. Both women visibly very angered.

"That is none of your business! What goes on between me and my husband is our problem! If I want to run away to a different country, so be it! If my husband wishes to fawn over me and think things will be they way they were, that's fine! He is too much of a gentleman to think otherwise, and if you ever said anything to him about this conversation, guess who he'd believe." Holly said feeling very smug with herself.

"How could you treat him like that?" Shane said as she realized she was talking to a monster.

"It's easy sweetheart! I suspect you've used his kindness and his easiness to be pushed over to your advantage once in a while." Holly laughed. "Don't act so shocked, Shane. After all, I am the one that left my husband standing in a museum; you should have given me the benefit of the doubt to know that I'm not a nice person, when challenged. I can't quite pinpoint why my Oliver seems to bring you up in conversation though."

Taken back by Holly's words, Shane seemed to understand where some of Holly's anger came from, she laughed. "Holly, are you jealous?" The air shifted. Holly seemed to become uncomfortable. For the first time Shane had the upper hand in this argument. "You can't seriously be jealous over our friendship, can you? If I loved a man like Oliver I would never be able to walk away from him, or at the very least, not give him an explanation why I left. Is it because you don't love him anymore?"

Holly's eyes seemed to become darker, and her mouth twitched. "I love my husband. Stay the hell away from him."

All of a sudden, Oliver cleared his throat. Both women were startled. Shane wondered how long he'd been standing there. Oliver tells Holly they better get going; they wouldn't want to miss their dinner reservations. Holly walked towards him, when she got to the door; she looked back at Shane, if looks could kill. Oliver held the door for his wife; she leaned up to kiss him, walked on through and down the hall. He looked at Shane. He looked as though he was going to say something but thought better of it; he turned and left to follow his wife.

Shane stood there and reflected on what had just occurred. She wondered how long Oliver was standing there, and how much he had heard. She laughed. She knew Oliver deserved better, but if he wasn't coming to terms with Holly and all her crazy antics that she had pulled, then so be it. Who was she to get in his way? Angered, she crumpled up the letter she had written to him and threw it away. She gathered her stuff and walked out of the Dead Letter Office.

When she got home, still infuriated by the fight she had with Holly, and how Oliver handled what happened between the two, she went into her basement and was happy to see the boxes she hadn't thrown away from when she first moved to Denver. She took every box she could find and started to pack. Shane looked at the clock; it was a little after 3 am. She went to bed, called the movers when she woke up the next morning and finished packing. She left for Seattle the following day.

After working in Seattle for a few months, she adjusted to her new surroundings and dove head first into her work. Shane's mind sometimes wondered to thoughts of him. That was quickly shaken when memories flooded her mind of the memory of him leaving with _her._ She kept in touch with Rita over emails. She was thankful Rita kept news about Oliver out, except that as of lately he looked tired. That night she got home from work and looked through the mail. "Bill, bill, junk…" She said as she stopped on a personal piece of mail. She dropped the mail that was in her hand, except for that letter. She swallowed and her heart skipped a few beats. She recognized the handwriting immediately. She walked over to her desk in the living room, opened the drawer, and ran her hand over the letters of her name. Miss S. McInerney. She took a deep breath, put the letter in the drawer and closed it.


	5. Chapter 5

The next few weeks since the letter had arrived, she had tried to not think about it, or him. She tried to squash her curiosity like he did when it was better not to know. But to her luck, she hadn't had a good week at work and had a few bad dates. She sat on the couch and thought of Oliver. There really was no other man that she ever encountered that matched Oliver's being. He was one of a kind. She shook her head and stood up. She started walking to the kitchen, turned around and walked over to the desk. She opened the drawer. There it was, the letter, addressed to her, from him. Anything he had to say couldn't make her feel any worse. She quickly closed the drawer. She thought about not reading it. She leaned back on the desk and thought. Her curiosity formed ideas of what it said. She made a decision. She walked into the kitchen and poured herself a glass of wine. She knew with the week she had, and the letter, she would need it. She walked back into her living room, put the glass of wine down next to the couch and she walked slowly to the desk. She opened the drawer again, picked up the envelope, closed the drawer and sat down on her couch. Her heart raced, her breathing became heavier, and she took a sip of wine.

She looked at the envelope; she wondered how he got her address. Suddenly with that thought, she felt like Holly. She ran away from him, no word of why she was going, and no goodbye. It didn't sit well with her and she immediately felt a pang of regret. She looked at the return address, there was something different. She picked up her phone and searched for his contact. The address was different. She really wondered what he had to say. She turned the letter over. She got up off the couch, walked to the desk and opened a different drawer. She pulled out a letter opener. She smiled because she normally just opened the envelope with her finger, but since it was from him, what better way to open it? She pulled out the letter and unfolded it.

Dear Shane,

She read her name. Her heart was beating faster and she prepared for what was to come. She sat back down on the couch and continued to read.

First please let me apologize for retrieving your address from Ms. Starkwell. I hope it was not an invasion of privacy as she was very reluctant to give it to me until I told her why I needed it. I hope you are not angry with me for decisions that I made. I also hope that you will read the rest of this letter since you never said goodbye. Knowing you, your curiosity has been put into overdrive.

She laughed to herself, knowing he knew her well.

Secondly, I would like to apologize for the way Holly fought with you. She had no right to bring your feelings to the light of day. Knowing I am a married man, I know you would not act upon your feelings. That dear Shane, is very commendable, especially in a world so focused on instant gratification and loose morals. Speaking of Holly, that night in the bank vault, when I wrote the letter, I told you being in that situation offered a certain clarity. You were semi right in the fact that it was a, come back letter. I wrote to tell her I was exhausted from no communication and it was time that she and I talked. I had written a poem that I recited at our wedding in hopes that it would remind her of what we meant to each other. I told her I was trying to be the man she wanted me to be, caring for her dreams, doing things she wanted to do together, like dancing.

She could tell by the ink that he had thought about the two of them dancing. At least she hoped he did. She did, and often.

Apparently for her it was too little too late. Yes, we tried to work things out, but it wasn't like it was before. It was working quite well as you know, I was going to ask her to move in, until that night I heard you two arguing. I realized that she, unfortunately, had not changed at all. She was always very opinionated and inflexible, and her jealousy and anger were always held close to the surface. I had changed to get my wife back, but she had not changed because she was certain that I would not change. This is a good thing I suppose, since no one should change for anyone but themselves. She and I discussed where to go from here. She said that she was not willing to give up her apartment in Paris, and I felt I couldn't leave the place where I grew up and belong. The ultimate conclusion we came to was that she and I go our separate ways and file for divorce.

She could not believe what she had read. She kept reading the last line over and over again.

Which brings me to my reason for writing to you, Shane, since the last night I saw you, I have not been able to get you off my mind. You are a woman who is very determined, infuriating at times, and not afraid to speak your mind, a good dancer, a good friend and a lady. You are also a compassionate, intelligent, kind hearted, passionate, sensitive and beautiful. The day we met Ramon, when he pointed out how beautiful you were, I was angered, I felt jealous, that someone so easily could sweep you off your feet. I realized then, there was a deeper feeling I felt for you than just coworkers or friends. That night, in the DLO, when we danced to Billy Joel's song, towards the end there were feelings that were so strong and for the sanctity of my marriage, I had to stop. What might have come after that would have been inappropriate and unfair to both of us. When we were locked in the bank vault thinking we only had hours left, there was no one else, in that moment, that I would have wanted there by my side. When we read those love letters that were written over 100 years ago, that was special and in a way bonded us a little closer to each other. When you read the last letter, I started praying that Katherine would fight and be able to live to see Jonathon. Then you started to cry. All I knew was that I had to hold you close. Make you feel safe and secure. I knew that's what you were doing when you told me that I was afraid to mail my letter to Holly. Then you asked what I was afraid of. Well Shane, I was afraid of what is currently happening, losing my wife to a divorce, being alone, having feelings for you, and most of all, I am afraid of losing you too.

She swallowed hard as a tear rolled down her cheek.

I have prayed for what seems like a lifetime, since you left, for you to be safe and happy. I only want the best for you, so if that means you staying there in Seattle, then I, dear Shane, am truly happy for you. I do hope you return, not only to me, but to Rita and Norman, and for the dead letter office. I've said it once; I'll say it again, come back Shane. Please.

With all my love,

Oliver

She wiped more tears from her eyes, picked up her phone, dialed a number, and ran into her bedroom.


	6. Chapter 6

*** Authors Note***

I just wanted to thank everyone who has read this little story, and a big thank you to all that have given feedback or just said they enjoyed it. I appreciate it, all of it.

Without further adieu, here is the final chapter of "With All My Love"

* * *

"Attention all passengers, you can now unbuckle your seat belts, use your electronic devices on airplane mode and move around. We should be arriving at Denver Airport in about three hours." The pilot said over the loud speaker.

She unbuckled her seat belt and took the letter out of her carryon bag. She had barely threw the necessities in a small bag and left for the airport as soon as she got off the phone with the airline when she found out there was room for her on the last fight out. She read the letter over and over.

"Ahh, the joy of a good letter. I've written and received my fair share." Said the elderly man next to her. "May I ask, is it from your beau?"

She smiled at him, "I'm not sure, I mean I don't have a…" She thought about the letter. "I'm going to Denver to find out if what he wrote in this is true."

"Do you mind if I ask you another question?" Shane shook her head no. "What is it about?" She hesitated to answer that, since he was a stranger and it was rather personal. But she figured he was a nice old man, she didn't give away too much, but just enough to where he could understand why she was on that plane. "As a World War II veteran, let me tell you, you have to read between the lines to feel their emotions. Even in person, there are always hidden messages. My wife and I, before we got married, would send letters. No matter where I was, she would always find me. She never said anything about being scared for me, but I could tell she worried. We never said I love you until I came home and had her in my arms again. I never let her go from then on. But those words that she wrote got me through some hard times. What was written in between had a much deeper meaning." She listened intently, intrigued by what he was saying. He continued to talk about how he and his wife wrote small love letters to each other just because they wanted to, or she would slip one in with his lunch when he went to work. When he was done talking and could see a small glimpse of a tear in his eye, she changed the subject and asked why he was traveling to Denver. "My wife, she's buried there. She passed late last year. I live with my daughter and her family, but I needed to visit her."

"Your daughter didn't come along?" Thinking that was a long way for an elderly gentleman to be traveling alone.

"No." He laughed. "She knows better than to get in the way of her parents." He sighed. "Tomorrow is our anniversary. We would have been married for 68 years."

"Wow that is amazing. I hope to find someone to spend that long with."

He patted her hand. "You will." He smiled at her. "You just be patient with that young gentleman and who knows, you might have what I had with my Lillian."

"All right passengers, we are about to make our final descent into Denver Airport, please take your seats and buckle up."

"I can't believe we're here already. Thank you for talking with me Mr.…" She realized they never introduced themselves."

"Katona, call me Lou."

"Well thank you Lou, I am Shane McInerney."

"What a beautiful name for a beautiful young woman."

"Thank you." She smiled and blushed. She helped him with his carryon bag from the overhead compartment and walked with him out of the plane.

"Good luck Shane, in life and in love."

"Thank you Lou. Happy anniversary."

He smiled and waved and walked towards baggage claim. She smiled. She looked at the time. It was almost a quarter after eleven. She hoped that Oliver would still be up and raced to get a cab.

The cab pulled up to the address that was on the letter. She took a deep breath. The porch light was on and so was a light inside. She hoped he would be awake. She got out of the cab and turned to pay the driver. The cab drove away. She took another deep breath and turned around. There he was, standing on the front porch. Her heart knocked against her chest.

"Miss McInerney?"

She missed the way he said her name. She missed the way he dressed; he was still wearing his suit vest and his pocket watch. She thought maybe it had been a long day for him. He came down a few steps; she realized she should say something. Words failed her at the moment. Finally she said "Is what you wrote to me true?"

Oliver looked a bit confused and came down the last few steps to the walkway. "Pardon me?"

"The letter you sent me. What you wrote, all of it true?" She pulled the letter out of her pocket.

He looked at her and the letter. A look of clarity took over his face. "No" is all he said. Her face and heart dropped. Her breathing was as if an elephant was sitting on her chest. She wondered if she made a huge mistake coming here. He took a few steps closer to her. "Not all of it is true." She was the one that looked confused now. He smiled. "I am divorced now." She was still confused and slightly shocked as to how fast the divorce was processed, she tried to form words to speak. "Holly had a _male friend_, as I will delicately put it, that she met in Paris. He happened to be an American divorce attorney."

Her face and heart dropped again. "Oh, Oliver." She said with a look of sympathy.

"I moved to get away from her memories." He closed the gap and was an arm length away. "Everything else in that letter was true." He smiled at her and locked his eyes on hers. "You are beautiful, I haven't stopped thinking of you, and I am afraid of falling more in love with you and having you leave me again." He had a hurt look trickle across his face. She couldn't say anything as her breathing became very shallow and tears started forming. She looked down at the ground. "I meant every word Shane." He stepped closer, closing the gap between them. She looked up at him. His eyes were glossy with tears too. He moved a piece of hair out of her eyes to behind her ear. His finger traced the edge of her jaw line and under her chin. He tipped her head back up just a tiny bit more. "Every word." He said as he leaned in to kiss her.

"Under the stars, it was so romantic!" Noah said as he rolled his eyes and giggled.

"Don't forget it was the most magical moment in their lives, at that point." Juliet added.

"Well you two wanted to hear the story about how we got together. How many times have you heard it?" Shane asked as she came out of her flashback.

"You both know it by heart." Oliver said as he laughed.

Juliet acted like she was thinking, "Well if Noah is six and I'm nine, then like, FOREVER!" They all laughed at what the little sandy blonde girl said.

"Look at the time, time for bed kids." Shane said as she tried to pick up the slumped over little boy from her lap.

"But it's the weekend, one more, please Mommy?"

"Yeah please Daddy?"

"You heard your mom, bed time." Oliver said as he tried to tickle his little girl.

As Juliet narrowly escaped 'The Tickle Monster' she and Noah switched parents and did their best puppy dog faces on them. Shane and Oliver looked at each other and smiled.

"Ok, one more." Cheers erupted. "But, you have to get ready for bed and say your prayers before we do." Shane said.

"Which story do you want to hear Noah?" Oliver asked.

"How about when we were born?"

"How about their first date?" Juliet asked.

"What about when Mommy and Daddy competed in the dancing championship?"

"How about when they got engaged?"

"What about their wedding day?" Noah asked Juliet.

"Or Aunt Rita and Uncle Norman's wedding day?"

"No fair! You were there!"

"I was in Mommy's tummy and she didn't know it yet!"

Shane looked over at Oliver and smiled. Oliver leaned over and kissed her.

"Ewwwww!" Echoed from the kids that were just fighting.

"Oh, don't eww us!" Shane said as she laughed.

"Did you pick a story Noah?" Oliver asked his son as their laughter faded.

"Yes Dad, I did. I want to hear about those." He pointed to a china closet that was lit from within. On the top shelf, underneath perfectly placed lights were four Dark of Night Awards.

"But we want to hear about the first ones you two got that are in your office too." Juliet said. "That was a good choice Noah."

"Thank you." He said as he bowed to his sister.

"Noah, hurry, the faster we get ready for bed and say our prayers, the faster we meet on Mommy and Daddy's bed to hear the story!"

"Ok, I'll race ya, Jules!"

The two ran off up the stairs.

"Somehow that kiss always gets lost in translation."

"Well I could remind you how it went, Mrs. O'Toole." Oliver said leaning in towards his wife.

"Oh Mr. O'Toole, you are quite the romantic."

Just as their lips touched, Noah screamed, "Mommy! Juliet won't move so I can brush my teeth!"

Oliver sighed, "I'll go." He got up and started to walk over towards the stairs.

Shane got up and grabbed his arm, he turned to her. "Maybe later I can tell you a story?" She smiled happily.

"Oh yeah? Which story?" Oliver asked intrigued as he took his wife in his arms.

"How about-" She leaned up and kissed him. "Our honeymoon?" She bit her lip, winked and smiled wickedly.

Oliver smiled and looked her in the eyes as if he was remembering it. His eyebrows went up in agreement. He kissed her and followed her upstairs.


End file.
